After winning a third-straight game, the Oakland Raiders are on track to potentially steal a wild card spot in the second year of this new rebuild. At 6-4, Oakland’s chances of making the playoffs sit at 45 percent, according to the New York Times.
If Oakland wants to make the playoffs, they are likely going to need to win four of their final six games to do so. While the schedule is pretty soft for the Raiders, there are reasons to be concerned about this team going forward. One potential downfall could be the team’s high penalty rate this season.
According to NFL Penalties.com, the Raiders have been flagged 88 times this season, just behind the Cardinals at 94, who have played one more game this season. In a recent piece by Bleacher Report, penalties, especially defensive penalties, were named the biggest kryptonite for the Raiders going forward:
The Raiders have been flagged a league-high 46 times on defense. That includes a ridiculous nine pass interference calls. No other defense has committed 40 penalties.
Oakland has lost a lot of talent on defense by way of injuries, so they can ill afford to continue to give away free yardage each week. If the Raiders are serious about making the playoffs this season, penalties are something they have to clean up going into the final six games of the season.
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